I bought this slow cooker a few years ago. As a busy family of 6 we were rushing around most evenings trying to do homework and activities. Cooking dinner was challenging at best. After complaining to a friend at swimming lessons one evening that I had yet to start dinner she told me that hers was just waiting to be dished up. I went out and bought this slow cooker the following day. I now have two, the 3.5 litre model and the 6.5 litre.

Both are brilliant and get used every week. The 6.5 litre is best for batch cooking, roasts, whole chickens etc. I have been known to have both slow cookers on the go at the same time!

You can use much cheaper cuts of meat and they just melt in your mouth after being cooked in the slow cooker. Often on a Saturday night I will cook a roast over night. I put it on high for the first few hours before I go to bed and then turn it to Med until morning.

The Morphy Richards model has three settings High, Med & Low. The low is effectively a keep warm feature.

The ceramic dish washes fine in the dishwasher. Although there are some glaze surface cracks in mine now. But plenty of life still in it. The glass lid is not supposed to go in the dishwasher. It's been in mine a couple of times by mistake and lived to tell the tale.

The instruction manual is quiet good. Some nice recipes for chilli, soups and curry. Once you get the hang of slow cooking you can adapt your own recipes. I haven't bought any slow cooker books but refer to the manual often for recipes.

The only thing I've had mixed success with in the slow cooker is rice. It's either stuck to the bottom or too wet.

In terms of wear and tear the plastic knobs on the lid and for the temperature setting are flimsy. The lid knobs cracked on both my Morphy Richards slow cookers shortly after buying them. They didn't come off completely so still able to use. The temperature knob on my 3.5 litre slow cooker came off and wouldn't go back on. I had to replace the slow cooker. I bought a cheaper Tesco model but lived to regret it. I later replaced it with another Morphy Richards.

When my husband saw me coming home with the first slow cooker, his reaction was oh no another gadget to gather dust. When the knob came off the 3.5 litre one, he was the one who sent me straight out to get another.

Perfect appliance for busy families. Can't picture a time when we won't use a slow cooker.